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Genetic Disease: Cystic Fibrosis

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Cystic Fibrosis Cystic fibrosis is a rare life threatening disease, that as of now has no cure. But with help from extensive research that is being conducted, there is soon to be a cure in the future for this disease. The disease attacks the digestive system and slowly over time shuts down the lungs. Cystic fibrosis is a genetic disease that is passed down from the parents to the children. Some parents may not know they are carriers of this disease, there is a 1 in 50% chance that people can be a carrier of CF and not even know it. The disease can cause serious damage to the pancreas and the lungs. In the lungs there is an abundance of thick mucus and is hard to get rid of. The mucus is unlike mucus found in unaffected people, their mucus …show more content…

There are many treatments to help with keeping people healthy and extending the life expectancy for this disease. One of the treatments Cady 2 is the V.E.S.T which is a jacket like vest that hooks up to a machine that pulses air into the vest at a high frequency, so the V.E.S.T shakes and vibrates the wearer to help break down the mucus so it can be coughed up out of the lungs. Most people use the nebulizer while wearing and using the V.E.S.T to help with saving time. The time of treatments vary and how much you do them varies too. In my family I have a cousin with CF and he does both treatments at the same time. He has a mask for his nebulizer that is in the shape of a fish, so he calls that particular treatment “fishy face”. He also has a V.E.S.T, which is camo, and he calls that his “shakes”. He does his treatments in the morning after he wakes up and starts playing. He also does them in the evening before he has to go to bed. My cousin is 3 and will be turning 4 in June, so getting him to do his treatments maybe sort of a struggle sometimes. But he is very good while doing them and he makes sure that he does them and that they are finished before he does anything …show more content…

The people have to do their treatments but they also have to stay healthy and active. They go to the gym and workout, it helps to strengthen lungs and helps make it easier to breathe and they stay healthy. Even though they have problems breathing they still have to stay in shape and to stay healthy. Also to help with dealing with it there are support groups to help with you any problems or questions that you may have. Many places may have support groups that you can go to for help. Schools have them for children that may need help with having to do things during

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